(opening
statement) "Mario's (Williams) surgery went well. We talked to the
doctor, he had it today and they said everything went well and he's
in good spirits. That's good news for him for the long term. Short
term, certainly we got to get ready to play. We know it's going to
be a tough game, but we prepared well and we worked hard and we're
ready to go."

(on
if there are any other health issues) "No, you know obviously our
receiver is out, but I think everybody's probable for the game that
had been held out a little bit."

(on
if QB Matt Schaub is fully healthy for Sunday) "Matt (Schaub)
practiced today and took the full practice again today, so it looks
good for him."

(on
the Ravens offense) "Well you look at the running back first. I
mean Ray Rice has had a tremendous year so far and their running
game has been spectacular. They've got (Joe) Flacco. They've got
Anquan Boldin. They've got all the pieces that can give you
problems. They have an excellent group."

(on
if they have to scale anything back without having OLB Mario
Williams) "As far as scaling things back, Brooks Reed has been
working the whole time. In fact, he played all but nine plays of
the last game and I thought he played pretty well. There's going to
be a drop off obviously. There's going to be some things you can't
do that you could do with the other guy, but people are going to
have to step up."

(on
if there is still a decision to made between cornerbacks Jason
Allen and Kareem Jackson) "Well Kareem should be full speed this
week, so that helps as far as our depth's concerned and guys
playing in the ball game."

(on
if OLB Brooks Reed replacing OLB Mario Williams changes his
thinking) "Well there were certain things that we would run that
Mario was going to rush no matter what. Now we have some
versatility that they don't who's going to rush and who isn't. That
helps a little bit, but we'd rather have Mario. We just had some
special things that we did with Mario and you're not going to be
able to do those things, but the rest of the stuff, like I said, we
played in the ball game and I thought our group overall played
pretty well."

(on
how hard it is to develop synergy between players on the fly) "Well
on the fly, it's a little tougher. It took us four or five weeks to
get it done with Mario (Williams) in a new position. Hopefully it
doesn't take four or five more weeks for those two (Brooks Reed and
Antonio Smith), but there's going to be some uncertainty as to
where the other guy's going to be because you just haven't played
together that long."

(on
what excites him about outside linebackers Connor Barwin and Brooks
Reed) "Well, that's why we drafted Brooks Reed. We feel like he can
come in and play this year, which he's done. Connor, we feel like a
lot of people didn't know if he was going to be an outside backer
or not, but I think he's played pretty well too. It's good that we
have both those guys."

(on
S Ed Reed) "Ed Reed's spectacular. He's a Hall of Fame safety.
There's not many Hall of Fame players playing right now and he's
one of them. He's an outstanding player that has great instincts.
He can be in the deep middle and intercept a play in the curl and
then run it all the way back for a touchdown. You got to be very
aware of where he is."

(on
ILB Ray Lewis) "Ray Lewis is the same way. The guy's been playing
for a long, long time, but he's been playing a tremendously high
level for a long time, which is really hard to do. He continues to
play that well and he's certainly a leader of the time. The other
thing they have is they've had this guy calling the defenses and
calling audibles for a long, long time too, which
helps."

WR
Andre Johnson

(on
if he made progress this week) "I feel like I made some progress. I
feel like I've been getting better every day. I've been running for
the past couple days, so just trying to get back to where I
was."

(on
if he knows when he will return) "No, we still don't have a
timetable on it. We're just taking it day by day. I've just been
working. I'm just trying to do everything I can to get back out on
the field."

(on
if he had his stitches removed this week) "Yeah, I had those taken
out earlier during the week, so those have been out."

(on
how good it's felt to run at practice) "Well, I think not only am I
surprising myself, I think I've surprised a lot of people because
for them to see me over there just moving around a week after
having the procedure was done. I'm just taking it a day at a time
trying to get better every day, trying not to have any setbacks. We
haven't had any setbacks so far, so that's a positive thing. I'll
do more treatment tomorrow, but I won't run tomorrow and we'll get
back out on the field Monday and run again and see how I feel. We
just keep trying to progress."

(on
if he has a better feel for when he might return) "No, I don't
know. I don't really have a set point at anything. I just hope to
be back as soon as possible. That's my main goal, but at the same
time, you want to me smart about it. I'm just taking it one day at
a time. That's pretty much it."

(on
if there's anything he's been able to do that's surprised him so
far) "I just think the way I've been moving around out on the field
has been surprising to everybody. I have a lot of the coaches come
by and say 'Hey man, we can't believe that you just had this done a
week ago and you're out there moving around.' I don't know. I'm
just hoping that it heals faster than what it's been healing so I
can get back out there with my teammates."

(on
if he has to be careful to not do too much too soon) "Yeah, you
definitely have to be very careful. When I'm out there on the field
doing little drills or things like that, they're always asking me
how I'm feeling. Am I feeling any pulling or anything like that?
The biggest thing is not having any setbacks, so that's the thing
we're trying to stay away from."

(on
if he's ever had any hamstring issues in the past) "No, this is my
first time ever dealing with anything hamstring-wise. It's
different, but at the same time, it's just a little process I have
to work through. I'll get through it and I'll be back out on the
field."

(on
how well he knew WR Derrick Mason before he joined the Texans)
"Well I actually didn't know him very well. I just knew him from
playing against him, but I didn't really know him. Just from
talking to him in the past few days, he seems like a real good guy,
very knowledgeable of the game and I think he's going to come in
and help out a whole lot. I'm very excited about having him
in."

(on
if WR Derrick Mason asks him a lot of questions about the offense)
"He asks a few questions, but I mean he's seen it all. He's been in
the game 15 years, so he's seen it all. He pretty much knows what
to expect."

(on
how hard it is to not be able to play) "It's very frustrating just
to sit there and watch your team out on the field and knowing that
if you can be out there and help, maybe things could be different.
That's probably the most frustrating part, especially sitting there
watching the Raiders game last week. That was a real frustrating
point for me."

(on
if he has much interaction with the coaches and players during the
game to offer advice) "I mean if I see something, I'll say
something, but they're calling the game. I can't call the game. But
definitely if you see something, you may give a suggestion or
whatever. If they agree with what you see, then maybe they'll call
it. It's just like if I was out on the field and I'd seen
something. It's the same thing. If you see something, you
definitely want to try to bring it to their attention."

(on
if he can see himself playing 15 years like WR Derrick Mason) "15?
Man, I don't know. I always said I was going to get to 10 and see
how I felt, see how my body felt and that's one year away. It came
pretty fast, but I don't know. Hopefully. For him to be playing 15
years, you look at the way he's running around out there, he looks
like he has fresh legs. Most guys that play 15 years, they're not
out there running like he's running. He's been doing a great job
taking of care of his body and making sure he's healthy when he's
out there. Hopefully if I could stay healthy like him, maybe I
could."

(on
how his body feels after nine years) "It's alright. It's not bad,
but I've been banged up here and there. I still feel like I have a
lot of years left to play."

(on
if he's going to Baltimore) "Yeah, with the knee I didn't, but I'll
be travelling. I didn't travel with my knee because I was in a
brace, but I'm fine. I can move around and everything, so I'll be
travelling with the team."

(on
if he would rather be at the game than stay at home) "Yeah, I can't
sit home and watch it. Even when the game I got hurt, I was in here
trying to watch the game. They didn't want me to come out and I
couldn't help it. I was just like 'Man, I'm going out there.' You
definitely want to be there. Even though you can't play, you
definitely want to be there to support your teammates."

FS
Danieal Manning
(on what the Texans will need to do in order to beat Baltimore)
"If we stop them from running; they're definitely going to try and
come in, and we match their physical (play) or even be more
physical than those guys, we're definitely going to come out of
this game with a win."

(on
how to be more physical than Baltimore) "You don't let up. You just
keep going. It's like a UFC fight or a boxing match, 12 rounds,
you've got to continue to take those licks and you put those licks
on them."

(on
returning kicks and playing full-time on defense) "I don't look at
that because I feel like I want to help the team win as much as I
can. If I could do more, that's what I would like to do. Quite
naturally, you're going to get tired, but we've got great guys that
can come in and back up and do what they need to do to get you out
there for that next down, so as much as I can do to help this team
win, that's what I want to do."

(on
whether he talked to Head Coach Gary Kubiak about being on the
field too much) "No, I never said anything about it. I don't have a
problem with it, but at the same time, I've got to be coachable and
got to be able to let the coaches sort some things out. If he asks
me a question if I get winded or anything, I'll just be truthful
with him, but I haven't been winded."

(on
Baltimore FS Ed Reed) "Since he came into the League, the guy's
always been making plays. He's just a ball hawking safety. He's
just got a knack for the ball, and he also comes across as one of
those guys that want to always make plays. He's definitely a great
teacher of the game and a great student of the game. You can tell
the way he watches film, certain defenses he's lined up in that you
know he's supposed to play a certain responsibility and he goes and
makes a play somewhere else, that's just being a great player. At
this point in my career, you're not allowed to do those certain
things, so I wouldn't go that far with it. I take my hat off to Ed
(for) the plays that he makes and just being a good football
player."

WR
Derrick Mason

(on
all the players he's played with throughout his career) "I've
played with a lot of good people, a lot of good players. I've never
played alongside with a receiver of 'Dre's (Andre Johnson) caliber.
I think playing with 'Quan (Anquan Boldin) was great. He's a very
good player. I played with a guy by the name of Kevin Dyson, a
first round draft pick in Tennessee, very good player, but his
career ended short because of injuries. He was going to be a good
one. But someone of 'Dre's caliber, I've never played with. It's
good. Santonio (Holmes) was great. Plaxico (Burress) was great, but
I think he's probably the best receiver in the League right now.
But I've had a lot of fun in 15 years. Three teams, has it been
three teams or four teams or something like that? Three or four
teams and have had a lot of fun, so I'm just hoping this year can
end up where I want it to end up and that's in the Super
Bowl."

(on
what the key has been to his longevity in the NFL) "I've been
blessed. I work hard in the offseason, but I think a lot of other
players work as well. I try to beat my body up as much as I can in
an offseason, so when I get in the season, it's pretty easy. I've
just been blessed. I haven't had any major injuries and I think
that's what kind of curtails a lot of players' careers. They get an
injury in year four or five and can't quite get over it. They're
not the same players, but I've been blessed that I haven't had any
injuries to my knees and that's always a good thing."

(on
what he brings to the offense) "Some veteran leadership. Not to say
they don't have it, but it's always good to have an extra guy,
especially on offense, and that reliability factor. I've been
reliable and consistent over my career, so I think that's what I
bring to the table, consistency. You can't put enough money a
person that's consistent, so hopefully I can continue it for the
season."

(on
what he was doing when he got the call that he would be traded to
the Texans) "I had just come back from Nashville visiting my
family. I got back to New Jersey and my agent called and said
'There's a possibility that you will be traded to Houston and it'd
be a win-win situation for you. You get to go to an organization
that's making a strong push towards the playoffs and you'd be going
into an offense that loves to utilize their wide outs.' I said okay
and then I got a call from (New York Jets Head Coach) Rex (Ryan)
and he told me what was going on and I said 'Hey, I'm good with it.
I can pick up the pieces and roll with anything.'"

(on
if it's strange that he started off in Houston and is now back in
Houston) "Yeah, it came full circle. I started off here in Houston
for two weeks with the number 82. Then we moved to Nashville and it
changed to 85, not because I wanted to, but because I was forced
to. But I've always said, it's not the number that makes the man;
it's the man that makes the number. To come back full circle to
Houston and have 82 on again, I think it's a good thing. There's a
lot of good that I know will come out of all this."

(on
the importance of having playoff experience) "It's very important
because the caliber of play jumps in the playoffs. You've might
have beat a team twice in the regular season, but it's hard to,
especially if you don't have that experience, to beat a team in the
playoffs because teams get very specific with what they're doing
and it's a one-game elimination. So as a veteran, you understand
what it takes to win in the playoffs and some young guys that you
have, you're able to talk to them and let them know and understand
that 'Hey, today you have to play your best football. There's no
next week. You got to be able to put your best foot forward and
hopefully it gets you into that next following week.'"

This area is reserved for members of the news media. If you qualify, please update your user
profile and check the box marked "Check here to register as an accredited member of the news media". Please include any notes
in the "Supporting information for media credentials" box. We will notify you of your status via e-mail in one business day.